Living a “green” lifestyle has become important to a vast majority of the population. To those that make it a priority to leave as little impact on our environment as possible, we have a few tips to assist you in achieving a “Green” Christmas!
One of the first places you can start is the Christmas tree itself. A lot of people opt to use reusable trees, but did you know that place trees are made of petroleum products? They use resources not only in manufacturing, but in shipping as well – as a lot of artificial trees are imported from countries like China. Plastic trees may be reusable, but research shows they are thrown out after repeated use. At that point, they are sent to landfills where their plastic contents last forever. Choosing a live tree is a much better choice for the environment. Live trees are a renewable resource. They are grown in tree farms where they contribute to air quality while growing. On top of that, almost 90% are recycled into mulch. You can buy live trees locally to support local farmers while also reducing the need for shipping that causes air pollution. We recommend buying a potted tree or one with roots so that you can replant it in your back yard. Smaller trees may be kept in a larger pot for years to come!

As for your holiday lights, instead of using the normal, incandescent lights to light your tree and home, consider using LED lights this year. They are more expensive initially, but they use up to 95% less energy than the traditional lighting, plus they last up to 100,000 hours when used indoors. Compare these numbers: It costs $18.00 to power 500 traditional lights over a 30 day period. It only costs $0.19 to power the same number of LED lights over a month. That is quite a big difference! No matter what lights you choose to use this Christmas, be sure to turn them all off when you retire to bed. It is not only a waste of energy, but it is a fire hazard as well.

What are you giving for gifts this year? We love the idea of making meals or offering services as Christmas gifts. A lot of people don’t really need any more “stuff”, giving a thoughtful handmade item will show them you care. Of course, a handmade card should accompany the gift! As for gift wrap, check out these stats:

Half of the paper America consumes each year is used to wrap and decorate consumer products. (Source: The Recycler's Handbook, 1990) In the US, the annual trash from gift wrap and shopping bags totals over 4 million tons. In Canada, the annual waste from gift wrap and shopping bags equals about 545,00 tons. If everyone wrapped just three gifts in reused paper or fabric gift bags, it would save enough paper to cover 45,000 hockey rinks.

That’s a lot of waste! So this year, use reused paper or fabric gift bags.

We hope that these tips will be helpful to you in achieving a “green” Christmas. If you have any more neat ideas for an environmentally friendly Christmas, please stop by our Facebook page and share with our online community.

For more information about our interior design company, the services we offer, or for pricing information – please give us a call at (770) 251-4557. You can also stop by our showroom located 16 Greenville Street, Newnan Georgia 30263 on Monday – Friday, 10am to 5pm or Saturday, 10am – 4pm.